Nuyts Archipelago
Encyclopedia
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
islands lying off Ceduna, South Australia
Ceduna, South Australia
Ceduna is a small town in the West Coast region of South Australia. It is situated in the northwest corner of Eyre Peninsula, facing the islands of the Nuyts Archipelago. It lies west of the junction of the Flinders and Eyre Highways around 786 km northwest of the capital Adelaide. The port...
, at the eastern end of the Great Australian Bight
Great Australian Bight
The Great Australian Bight is a large bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia.-Extent:...
and the north-western coast of the Eyre Peninsula
Eyre Peninsula
Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded on the east by Spencer Gulf, the west by the Great Australian Bight, and the north by the Gawler Ranges. It is named after explorer Edward John Eyre who explored some of it in 1839-1841. The coastline was first explored by...
. Many of the islands support extensive colonies of Short-tailed Shearwaters, or muttonbirds, while its smaller islets and reefs provide breeding sites for Australian Sea Lions.
History
The archipelago was named in 1802 by Matthew FlindersMatthew Flinders
Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...
after Dutch diplomat Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts
Pieter Nuyts or Nuijts was a Dutch explorer, diplomat, and politician.He was part of a landmark expedition of the Dutch East India Company in 1626–27, which mapped the southern coast of Australia. He became the Dutch ambassador to Japan in 1627, and he was appointed Governor of Formosa in the same...
, who was the senior official of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
on the ship ′t Gulden Zeepaerdt ("The Golden Seahorse"), captained by François Thijssen
François Thijssen
François Thijssen or Frans Thijsz was a Dutch explorer who explored the southern coast of Australia.He was the captain of the ship t Gulden Zeepaerdt when sailing from Cape of Good Hope to Batavia...
who mapped the southern coastline of Australia from Albany
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
to Ceduna in the course of a 1626–27 voyage from the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
to Formosa
Formosa
Formosa or Ilha Formosa is a Portuguese historical name for Taiwan , literally meaning, "Beautiful Island". The term may also refer to:-Places:* Formosa Strait, another name for the Taiwan Strait...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Nuyts was in the region of the archipelago in January 1627. Both Flinders and Nicolas Baudin
Nicolas Baudin
Nicolas-Thomas Baudin was a French explorer, cartographer, naturalist and hydrographer.Baudin was born a commoner in Saint-Martin-de-Ré on the Île de Ré. At the age of fifteen he joined the merchant navy, and at twenty joined the French East India Company...
, who also explored the area in 1802, named several of the islands.
During the early 19th Century the archipelago and adjacent coast were used as a base for sealing
Seal hunting
Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. The hunt is currently practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, Namibia, the Danish region of Greenland, Norway and Russia...
and for whaling
Whaling
Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. Various coastal communities have long histories of sustenance whaling and harvesting beached whales...
, usually by Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
-based entrepreneurs who established whaling stations on St Peter Island as well as at Fowlers Bay
Fowlers Bay, South Australia
Fowlers Bay, formerly Yalata, is a small coastal town in South Australia, located approximately north west of the state capital, Adelaide. Situated on the Nullarbor Plain, it was once an active port and a gateway to the western reaches of the continent, but fell into decline in the 1960s...
and Streaky Bay
Streaky Bay, South Australia
Streaky Bay is a coastal town on the western side of the Eyre Peninsula, in South Australia just off the Flinders Highway 303 km north west of Port Lincoln and 727 km by road from Adelaide...
.
Description
Of the roughly 30 islands and reefs in the archipelago, those lying furthest from the coast of the Eyre Perninsula are known as the Isles of St Francis, after the largest. Most of the islands are formed of calcareniteCalcarenite
thumb|250px|The [[Pietra di Bismantova]] in central [[Italy]] is an example of calcarenite formation.Calcarenite is a type of limestone that is composed predominately, more than 50 percent, of detrital sand-size , carbonate grains...
lying on granite; where the softer calcarenite is close to sea level it has been heavily eroded by wave action. With the exception of Evans Island, the islands of the archipelago lie within either the Isles of St Francis or the Nuyts Archipelago Conservation Parks, both of which were constituted by statute in 1972 to conserve island populations and habitat for endangered species.
The waters of the archipelago and the adjoining bays of the mainland are protected by the 4000 km2 Nuyts Archipelago Marine Park. The area is biologically unique in South Australia due to the influence of the Leeuwin Current
Leeuwin Current
The Leeuwin Current is a warm ocean current which flows southwards near the western coast of Australia. It rounds Cape Leeuwin to enter the waters south of Australia where its influence extends as far as Tasmania...
, flowing eastwards across the Great Australian Bight and bringing features more typical of western than south-eastern Australia. In and around the archipelago the subtropical Leeuwin Current meets and mixes with the colder waters of the Flinders Current creating a biodiversity hotspot
Biodiversity hotspot
A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with a significant reservoir of biodiversity that is under threat from humans.The concept of biodiversity hotspots was originated by Norman Myers in two articles in “The Environmentalist” , revised after thorough analysis by Myers and others in...
. Examples of the effect of the Leeuwin Current include the presence of plate corals and fish such as the Western Footballer
Neatypus obliquus
Neatypus obliquus, the sole species in genus Neatypus, is a marine fish that is endemic to southern reefs of Australia. It is placed in the Kyphosidae family and informally known as the Western Footballer....
.
Islands
Isles of St Francis Conservation Park- St Francis Island – named in 1627 by Thijssen after his patron saintPatron saintA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
, at 809 ha it is the second largest island in the archipelago. It is covered by a mix of grasslandGrasslandGrasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, saltbushAtriplexAtriplex is a plant genus of 100-200 species, known by the common names of saltbush and orache . The genus is quite variable and widely distributed. It includes many desert and seashore plants and halophytes, as well as plants of moist environments...
and low shrublandShrublandShrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity...
and supports a large population of muttonbirds (estimated at 273,000 pairs). The highest point, 81 m above sea level, carries an automated lighthouse and radio beacon. It has a long history of agricultural use as well as of guanoGuanoGuano is the excrement of seabirds, cave dwelling bats, and seals. Guano manure is an effective fertilizer due to its high levels of phosphorus and nitrogen and also its lack of odor. It was an important source of nitrates for gunpowder...
mining. - Masillon Island – lying 2.5 km south of St Francis, it was named in 1802 in the course of Baudin’s expedition after a Bishop of Clermont, Jean Baptiste MassillonJean Baptiste MassillonJean Baptiste Massillon was a French Catholic bishop and famous preacher, Bishop of Clermont from 1717 until his death.-Early years:Massillon was born at Hyères in Provence where his father was a royal notary...
. It is vegetated with heathy shrubland and saltbush, and supports muttonbirds (39,520 pairs). - Fenelon Island – lying 1.5 km south of Masillon, it was named by Baudin after François FénelonFrançois FénelonFrançois de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon, more commonly known as François Fénelon , was a French Roman Catholic archbishop, theologian, poet and writer...
, a French archbishop and theologian. It features heathHeath-Habitats:* Heath or heathland, low-growing woody vegetation, mostly consisting of heathers and related species* Heaths in the British National Vegetation Classification system...
land on shallow soils and supports a large population of White-faced Storm Petrels (13,000 pairs), as well as a sea lion breeding colony. - Smooth Island – a dome-shaped island with a covering of dense, low scrub, it lies 200 m north of St Francis.
- Egg Island – lying 400 m north-east of St Francis, it is dome shaped with a high point 41 m above sea level. It has deep soils and muttonbirds (400 pairs).
- Dog Island – lying 300 m east-north-east of St Francis, it has saltbush shrubland and muttonbirds (1816 pairs).
- Freeling Island – lying 100 m north-east of Dog Island, it was named after Major-General Sir Arthur Henry Freeling, Surveyor-General of South Australia. It has muttonbirds (112 pairs).
- West Island – lying in the open ocean 1.5 km west of St Francis, it features exposed granite surfaces and is used by Cape Barren GeeseCape Barren GooseThe Cape Barren Goose is a large goose resident in southern Australia. The species is named for Cape Barren Island, where specimens were first sighted by European explorers.-Taxonomy:...
. It supports a sea lion breeding colony. - Lacy Island – lying 12 km north-east of St Francis, it was named by Flinders on 3 February 1802 after Mr Lacy, a crew member of HMS Investigator. It has low heath, shrubland, and supports muttonbirds (4740 pairs).
- Hart Island – the island was named after Captain John Hart, a Premier of South Australia.
Evans Island
- Evans Island – lying between the two conservation parks but part of neither, Evans is a lighthouse reserve managed by the Australian Commonwealth GovernmentGovernment of AustraliaThe Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
. It features Marsh SaltbushAtriplex paludosaAtriplex paludosa, commonly known as Marsh Saltbush, is a species of saltbush endemic to Australia.-Description:It grows as an erect shrub up to a metre high...
shrubland on deep soils, and supports muttonbirds (29,472 pairs).
Nuyts Archipelago Conservation Park
- St Peter Island (also called St Peter's Island) – at 13 km in length and 3429 ha in area, is the largest and most accessible island in the archipelago, and holds the greatest number of muttonbirds (334,800 pairs). It lies only 5 km from the mainland and was farmed from 1859 until it was added to the conservation park in 1988. Since sheep grazing ceased the vegetation has become dominated by regenerating native plant communities with patches of mallee woodlandMallee Woodlands and ShrublandsMallee Woodlands and Shrublands is a Major Vegetation Group which occurs in semi-arid areas of southern Australia. The vegetation is dominated by mallee eucalypts which are rarely over 6 metres high...
. It was named in 1627 by Thijssen after Nuyts' patron saint. - Gliddon Reef – an islet to the south-west of St Peter, it supports a sea lion breeding colony.
- Purdie Islands – little more than a chain of low rocks, they were named by Flinders on 3 February 1802 after Robert Purdie, the surgeon’s assistant on the Investigator. They support a sea lion breeding colony.
- Lounds Island – covered by low, dense vegetation, it was named by Flinders on 7 February 1802 after midshipman Sherrard Lound. It supports a sea lion breeding colony.
- Goat Island – a 303 ha island lying 2 km south-west of St Peter Island, it supports muttonbirds (94,800 pairs).
- Breakwater Island – an islet to the south-east of Goat Island, it supports a sea lion breeding colony.
- Eyre Island – a sand island supporting large numbers of Pied Oystercatchers, it was named afte explorer Edward John EyreEdward John EyreEdward John Eyre was an English land explorer of the Australian continent, colonial administrator, and a controversial Governor of Jamaica....
. - Franklin Islands – both East and West Franklin Islands are covered by Nitre BushNitraria billardiereiNitraria billardierei is a perennial salt tolerant shrub. It is often found in saline areas or areas that have been overgrazed. Nitre Bush flowers mainly in spring with small ovoid or oblong fruit that are purple, red or golden...
on deep soils, with breeding muttonbirds (102,080 pairs). They were named by Flinders on 3 February 1802 after midshipman John FranklinJohn FranklinRear-Admiral Sir John Franklin KCH FRGS RN was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. Franklin also served as governor of Tasmania for several years. In his last expedition, he disappeared while attempting to chart and navigate a section of the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic...
who was later to become well known as a polar explorer. Similar calcareniteCalcarenitethumb|250px|The [[Pietra di Bismantova]] in central [[Italy]] is an example of calcarenite formation.Calcarenite is a type of limestone that is composed predominately, more than 50 percent, of detrital sand-size , carbonate grains...
-capped plateaus on granite platforms, the islands are joined at low tide by a strip of sand. Once part of the St Francis Island pastoral leasePastoral leaseA pastoral lease is Crown land that government allows to be leased, generally for the purposes of farming.-Australia:Pastoral leases exist in both Australian commonwealth law and state jurisdictions....
, they were occasionally used for grazing sheep. Public access to the Franklin Islands is prohibited in order to safeguard the relict population of stick-nest rats there. - Lilliput and Blefescu Islands – small islets which were only officially named in 2007, lying off East and West Franklin respectively, they both support sea lion breeding colonies.
Important Bird Area
The archipelagoArchipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
, with the exception of Hart Island, has been identified by BirdLife International
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
as a 110 km2 Important Bird Area
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...
(IBA) because it contains over 1% of the world populations of Short-tailed Shearwater
Short-tailed Shearwater
The Short-tailed Shearwater or Slender-billed Shearwater , also called Yolla or Moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in Australian waters, and is one of the few Australian native birds in which the chicks are commercially harvested...
s (with an estimated maximum of 890,740 breeding pairs), White-faced Storm-Petrel
White-faced Storm-petrel
The White-faced Storm Petrel , also known as White-faced Petrel is a small seabird of the storm-petrel family. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Pelagodroma....
s (22,750 breeding pairs) and Pied Oystercatcher
Pied Oystercatcher
The Pied Oystercatcher, Haematopus longirostris, is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird native to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. The similar South Island Pied Oystercatcher The Pied Oystercatcher, Haematopus longirostris, is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading...
s (about 250 individuals). Other birds nesting in the IBA include Little Penguin
Little Penguin
The Little Penguin is the smallest species of penguin. The penguin, which usually grows to an average of in height and in length , is found on the coastlines of southern Australia and New Zealand, with possible records from Chile.Apart from Little Penguins, they have several common names...
s (over 1000 pairs), Pacific Gull
Pacific Gull
The Pacific Gull is a very large gull, native to the coasts of Australia. It is moderately common between Carnarvon in the west, and Sydney in the east, although it has become scarce in some parts of the south-east, as a result of competition from the Kelp Gull, which has "self-introduced" since...
s (about eight pairs), Caspian Tern
Caspian Tern
The Caspian Tern is a species of tern, with a subcosmopolitan but scattered distribution. Despite its extensive range, it is monotypic of its genus, and has no subspecies accepted either...
s (about 250 pairs) and Crested Terns (at least 3000 pairs), as well as Eastern Reef Egret
Eastern Reef Egret
The Eastern Reef Heron , also known as the Pacific Reef Egret or Eastern Reef Egret, is a kind of heron. They are found in many areas of Asia including the oceanic region of India, Southeast Asia, Japan, Polynesia, and in Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand.Pacific Reef Herons are medium-sized...
s, Osprey
Osprey
The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...
s, White-bellied Sea Eagle
White-bellied Sea Eagle
The White-bellied Sea Eagle , also known as the White-breasted Sea Eagle, is a large diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Originally described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788, it is closely related to Sanford's Sea Eagle of the Solomon Islands, and the two are considered a superspecies...
s and Hooded Plover
Hooded Plover
The Hooded Dotterel or Hooded Plover is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family. It is endemic to southern Australia and Tasmania. There are two recognized subspecies, both of which are classifed as Endangered....
s. Rock Parrot
Rock Parrot
The Rock Parrot , also known as the Rock Elegant, is a parrot which is endemic to coastal South Australia, southern Western Australia, and that continent's offshore islands, including Rottnest Island. It is a small, predominantly olive-green parrot...
s occur on Lounds Island and probably Smooth Island.
Other animals
Tiger Snakes and Southern Carpet PythonMorelia spilota imbricata
Morelia spilota imbricata is a large snake found in southern regions of Western Australia and western South Australia. A member of the python family, it is commonly known as the Southern Carpet Python.-Description:...
s occur in the archipelago. Greater Stick-nest Rat
Greater Stick-Nest Rat
The Greater Stick-nest Rat, House-building Rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae.It is found only in Australia on the Franklin Islands and St Peter Island in the Nuyts Archipelago, Reevesby Island, Salutation Island, Faure Island and Heirisson Prong, and a fenced off area at Roxby Downs...
s are found on the Franklin Islands. An isolated subspecies of the Southern Brown Bandicoot
Southern Brown Bandicoot
The Southern Brown Bandicoot , also known as the Quenda from the local Noongar tongue from South Western Australia, is a short-nosed bandicoot found mostly in southern Australia....
(Isoodon obesulus nauticus) is endemic to the archipelago and confined to St Francis and the Franklin Islands. An unsuccessful attempt was made to reestablish a colony of Brush-tailed Bettongs on St Francis Island, where the species had previously become extinct; a similar introduction to St Peter Island has been more successful. The archipelago is important for Australian Sea Lion
Australian Sea Lion
The Australian Sea Lion , also known as the Australian Sea-lion or Australian Sealion, is a species of sea lion that breeds only on the south and west coasts of Australia...
s; it contains eight breeding colonies as well as several haul-out
Hauling-out
Hauling-out is the behaviour associated with pinnipeds , of temporarily leaving the water between periods of foraging activity for sites on land or ice...
sites. Southern Fur Seals also use haul-out sites in the archipelago, while Southern Right Whale
Southern Right Whale
The southern right whale is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus Eubalaena. Like other right whales, the southern right whale is readily distinguished from others by the callosities on its head, a broad back without a dorsal fin, and a long arching...
s migrate along the coast from May to October.